Emilia Pechinkova, a 24-years-old Bulgarian Pomak (Bulgarian speaking Muslims) bride poses for a photograph following the “gelina” or face painting ceremony carried out by female guests and relatives in preparation for her three-day wedding ceremony in the village of Draginovo, 100 kms southeast of Sofia on April 22, 2016. Bulgaria's Muslim population is one of the highest in the European Union. During the Communist regime religious rituals were not tolerated, and Muslims were forced to abandon wearing their traditional wedding outfits. Recently, more young Pomak women want to include traditional wedding customs that were forbidden during the regime, regardless of their secular lifestyles and the high cost of such a wedding. (Photo by Nikolay Doychinov/AFP Photo)

“The Labor Day Parade (or West Indian Carnival), is an annual celebration held on American Labor Day (the first Monday in September), in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, New York. Ms. Jessie Waddell and some of her West Indian friends started the Carnival in Harlem in the 1920s by staging costume parties in large enclosed places like the Savoy, Renaissance and Audubon Ballrooms due to the cold wintry weather of February. This is the usual time for the pre-Lenten celebrations held in most countries around the world. However, because of the very nature of Carnival, and the need to parade in costume to music, indoor confinement did not work well. The earliest known Carnival street parade was held on September 1, 1947. The Trinidad Carnival Pageant Committee was the founding force behind the parade, which was held in Harlem. The parade route was along Seventh Avenue, starting at 110th St.” – Wikipedia

Photo: A reveler looks on during the West Indian-American Day Parade September 5, 2011 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. More than 2 million spectators were expected to attend the celebration of Caribbean culture. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

A girl splashes water over a boy amidst soaring temperatures at the Shati camp for Palestinian refugees in Gaza City on July 17, 2023. (Photo by Mohammed Abed/AFP Photo)

A model presents a creation from the “Remembranzas y Colores” collection by Mexican designer Carlos Pineda with textures and prints honouring Mexico, during the first day of the 76th edition of Intermoda in Guadalajara, state of Jalisco, Mexico, on January 18, 2022. (Photo by Ulises Ruiz/AFP Photo)

Cosplayer Hayley Wilson, in her handmade costume, poses for a picture at the MCM Comic Con London 2023 at the ExCel Centre in London, Britain on October 29, 2023. (Photo by Maja Smiejkowska/Reuters)

A view of a Gucci's advertisement campaign selected for an exhibition to celebrate creative vision of a creative director Alessandro Michele at Gucci Garden Archetypes, in Florence, Italy, Thursday, May 13, 2021. (Photo by Antonio Calanni/AP Photo)

Actresses perform during the Olympic flame lighting ceremony for the Paris 2024 Olympics Games at the Ancient Olympia archeological site, birthplace of the ancient Olympics in southern Greece, on April 16, 2024. (Photo by Angelos Tzortzinis/AFP Photo)

A woman jumps over a puddle as she crosses a street after a torrential downpour in the South Beach part of Miami, July 18, 2014. (Photo by Carlo Allegri/Reuters)